Hoops Rumors

Team USA will make a lineup change for its gold medal game on Saturday vs. France, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who says that Suns forward Kevin Durant will be inserted into the starting five, with Celtics guard Jrue Holiday expected to make the move to the bench. Durant missed all of Team USA’s exhibition contests leading up to the Olympics due to a calf … [Read more...] about Team USA Notes: Durant, Holiday, Brown, Tatum, Embiid

The NBA’s leaked slate of Christmas Day games will feature several heavy hitters. Sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) that, as usual, five games will be broadcast, highlighted by a marquee matchup between two longtime Eastern Conference foes, the revamped Sixers and the Celtics. Boston, the reigning league champion, will host. The schedule will be rounded … [Read more...] about Christmas Day Games Include Sixers-Celtics, Lakers-Warriors

Oshae Brissett provided an update on his status during his “Brissy TV” YouTube show, relays Lauren Campbell of MassLive. Brissett, who remains unsigned nearly six weeks into free agency, said he’s still exploring his options and a return to Boston remains a possibility. “I’m still a free agent now, talking to some teams. You guys will all see obviously when it happens, where I … [Read more...] about Celtics Notes: Brissett, Tatum, Kerr, Yabusele

After going 64-18 in the regular season and 16-3 in the playoffs to claim their 18th title this June, the Celtics already look like the team to beat next season. In a new reader mailbag, Brian Robb of Masslive.com speculates as to which players could potentially improve even more in 2024/25. Robb believes that reserve big man Xavier Tillman, who’s dealt with knee troubles in … [Read more...] about Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Brunson, Randle, Tsai, Marks

3:38pm: Watson’s two-way contract with the Celtics is official, according to the team (Twitter link). 12:39pm: Second-round pick Anton Watson will sign a two-way contract with the Celtics, a league source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). The 23-year-old small forward was the 54th selection in this year’s draft after playing five seasons at Gonzaga. He … [Read more...] about Celtics Sign Anton Watson To Two-Way Contract

While there are still some noteworthy free agents who have yet to find new teams, we’re currently in a relatively slow period for NBA transactions, as most teams have a pretty good idea of what their rosters will look like ahead of the 2024/25 season. With that in mind, Tim Bontemps of ESPN (subscription required) recently spoke to 18 NBA coaches, scouts and executives to … [Read more...] about Coaches, Scouts, Execs Weigh In On NBA Offseason Moves

On paper, the U.S. Olympic men’s team looks like one of the best collections of talent since 1992, The Athletic’s Joe Vardon writes while pondering the team’s upside. “I don’t know if Magic, Michael and Larry, if they coined that [nickname] themselves and walked around calling themselves the Dream Team or if that was the nickname that fans and media gave them, [but] I feel like … [Read more...] about Team USA Notes: Ceiling, Serbia Win Takeaways, Embiid, Holiday, White

Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, an All-NBA first-teamer for each of the past three seasons, was a surprise DNP-CD in Team USA’s pool-play victory over Serbia on Sunday, joining Tyrese Haliburton as the only two players on the 12-man roster who didn’t see the court. Keeping Tatum on the bench isn’t the plan going forward, however, according to head coach Steve Kerr, who told … [Read more...] about Kerr: Tatum Will Play On Wednesday For Team USA

Derrick White had to alter his summer vacation plans when he got an offer to join the U.S. Olympic team in the wake of Kawhi Leonard‘s injury, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Instead of traveling to Cabo San Lucas, White and his family are spending two weeks in Paris, but he won’t get to relax until he’s done trying to win a gold medal. “I just had to change plans … [Read more...] about Celtics Notes: White, Brown, Harper Jr., Olympics